To Be A Man
by Oriondruid
Summary: The weapon came from nowhere and had wrought much damage before they'd neutralized it. Now rebuilt and reprogrammed it was ready to be unleashed once again. But was it still just a machine or was it now something more? Rated T for some violence.


**To Be A Man**

By Oriondruid

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**Disclaimer:** As should be self evident from my site profile I am not Suzanne Collins. Neither am I the maker of the Terminator films or Skynet! Therefore I hold no claim to these characters. They are all the brilliant work of the author and filmakers and I am just happy to be able to 'play' in their toybox for a while. No commercial gain is intended or sought for this story.

**Summary:** Both the human Resistance in the world dominated by Skynet and the District 13 Rebels of Panem had to live out their lives in a maze of underground tunnels and bunkers. What if Skynet made a targeting error when sending back one of it's Terminators through space/time?

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**Part 1: The weapon from nowhere.**

Their weapon was finally ready! Where it had come from nobody knew, it's memory chips were too badly damaged to yield much information, but the vital main CPU was thankfully undamaged. It was thought possible that it had 'taken a wrong turn' and fallen through into their universe from 'somewhere else'. At least that was their best guess. It had wrought great damage and slaughter amongst their people before they were eventually able to subdue it. It had then taken them years to retro engineer it, to rebuild and reprogramme it. Now all they needed was to finalise it's camouflage and set it free on the Capitol, and on President Snow.

A few details needed fine tuning, the right companion must be chosen and both of them had to be selected in a Reaping. From which District should they be? An inconsequential backwater would be best since the security around President Snow was always wary of Careers from the more influential Districts, they feared an assassin trained to kill.

So then, District 11? District 12? Perhaps. It was eventually decided District 12 would be chosen and their agent there began his work. There was much to arrange.

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**Part 2: The Reaping.**

The Capitol escort Effie Trinket stood on the steps of the District 12 Justice Building and read the slip of paper she had chosen, not knowing all of them bore the same name. She spoke the name, saying, "Primrose Everdeen!" Then looking around the assembled crowd she said, "Come on up dear, don't be shy!"

An obviously terrified pretty young girl, with her blond hair in two long braids emerged from the crowd walking stiff legged in shock, terror written on her face. Four Peacekeepers surrounded her and began to march her towards the Justice Building's steps, but as they did so another older girl ran out of the crowd. She had her dark black hair in a single braid and had olive skin. Whilst beautiful in a way her face was not 'conventionally' pretty.

She yelled out at the Capitol's Escort with a strong but fearful voice, saying, "I volunteer." Hearing this Effie Trinket motioned for the Peacekeepers to release the younger girl, who immediately rushed to her sister saying, "Katniss, no, you mustn't do this."

The older sister briefly hugged the younger girl and told her it would be okay and to go to their mother. Then the Peacekeepers pulled them apart, taking the older girl up to the steps of the building.

Soon a boy Tribute was also chosen, a boy called Peeta Mellark, the baker's son whom Katniss knew slightly. He had been kind to her in the past and had saved her family from starvation during a desperate time after her father had died. She knew the boy was decent and kind and if she had to go to the Capitol and then be sent into the deadly Arena she felt she could scarcely ask for a better companion...

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**Part 3: The Victors.**

Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark had won! Against all the odds they had become the joint Victors of the 74th Hunger Games! At their Victory Ceremony they stood together before President Snow, who obviously hated them for the humiliation they had inflicted on himself and the Gamemakers, even though he tried to hide it from the TV cameras. They received his grudgingly simulated 'praise', knowing full well that when the cameras were off him he would immediately begin plotting their deaths.

Eyeing her dress and fully understanding the symbolism it represented he nevertheless kissed Katniss on the cheek in 'congratulation.' As he drew close she was repelled by the stench of blood and roses that he exuded. It was all she could do not to throw up, or flinch away.

Then Snow turned to Peeta and took him by the hand intending to shake it. But then something incredible happened. Moving so fast he was a blur the boy literally began to tear the President to pieces, beginning with the hand and associated arm he'd extended to Peeta, which he ripped off. Then with inhuman strength he tore off President Snow's head, the blood fountaining from the stump of his neck as his headless body momentarily still remained standing. There was a look of utter astonished shock and disbelief still on the dead President's face as Peeta held his head in his hands, then let it fall to the floor. Katniss was both terrified and elated, not knowing how to process what she was seeing.

For the half dozen armed guards on the podium who were intended to protect the President there had been no time to react and before they could even begin to shoot Peeta had already snapped three of their necks and broken the arm of another, taking his weapon. Peeta shot the remaining guards, but not before being hit himself by some of their bullets. Remarkably however these seemed to have little effect.

Peeta then held up the head of the former President to the still functioning TV cameras and said, "Thus die all tyrants! People of Panem, the beast who ruled you is dead and the revolution now begins. Look up!"

Above the Capitol masses of gunship hovercraft bearing the markings of District 13 appeared in the sky above, their missiles and machine guns trained on the city below, whilst paratroopers also began dropping en mass from other transport craft.

Peeta carried on addressing the populous into the camera, saying, "I'm speaking now to all the Districts and the decent folk who live there, This is your time! Remember all your stolen and murdered children! Rise up and destroy those who have held you captive in your own country and slaughtered so many innocents. Look to your own skies, we are dropping weapons to you to balance the odds, in order that you can free yourselves and begin a new life. Some of you may die in the struggle but do so with joy in your hearts, knowing your loved ones will be free! Katniss your Mockinjay and I wish you good fortune and will now go and join the fighting here in the Capitol. Then a burst of gunfire from a sniper on a nearby rooftop killed a camera operator and hand in hand Peeta and Katniss, both now armed with the dead guard's guns, ran from the podium to join the fighting in the streets below.

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**Part 4: The Aftermath**

The battle for The Capitol was short and fairly bloodless in terms of civilian deaths. The shock of what had been seen on their screens took the fight out of most people and even many previously loyal Peacekeepers seemed utterly stunned by the events they'd witnessed on the screens. In the Capitol it was all over in a matter of hours and the Rebels had won. Katniss and Peeta had been in the thick of the fighting during the attack on the main Peacekeeper Barracks and even though Peeta had apparently been shot again more than once in the fighting, because he had placed himself between Peacekeeper bullets and Katniss to defend her, it seemed he was invulnerable to weapons fire. The bullets which hit him seemed to cause no serious injury.

Katniss couldn't understand it and in a short lull in the battle asked him, "How is this possible Peeta? You should be dead many times over, yet it doesn't even seem to slow you down."

Peeta just smiled at her and said, "Don't worry my love, I'll explain everything when this is over, for now let's finish this fight."

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**Part 5: Revelations.**

The fighting had ended and Katniss insisted that Peeta should be taken to the hospital as a matter of urgency, as she was so worried about all the wounds he had sustained. Peeta just smiled enigmatically and told her, "That's where we need to go anyway Katniss, not so much to get me treated though, there is a surprise waiting for you there."

Upon their arrival at the hospital Katniss and Peeta, instead of being sent to the emergency room, were escorted up to one of the private rooms. As they entered Katniss almost fainted, because lying in the bed she saw Peeta Mellark, despite the fact that he also stood by her side. She felt her head was swimming and the Peeta by her side held her steady until she seemed less likely to pass out.

Then the 'other' Peeta in the bed smiled at the one who was standing holding Katniss, saying, "How was it then, my 'evil twin'? I'd have given anything to have been in that fight but I'm still not fully able to use this bloody leg. I felt so helpless lying in that medivac hovercraft, sat down in the hills waiting for the fighting to end. I really wanted to be able to help you and Katniss out."

"You did help out Peeta, it would all have been impossible without you, and Katniss of course." A new voice from behind Katniss said. "It was entirely down to you both, to your magnificent performance in the Arena that we were able to get Peeta 2 here close enough to President Snow to kill the bastard, with Katniss at his side as the Mockingjay, to trigger the revolution. We couldn't have done it without you two. Like I said to you just before you entered the Arena Katniss, I was betting on you my dear, and not just me, because the whole plan revolved around you and Peeta both becoming the Victors of the 74th Hunger Games."

Katniss swung round as she heard what was said, knowing the voice of the man who'd spoken. She flung her arms around her beloved stylist Cinna, the man who had created the 'Girl on Fire' and had, with the help of Effie and Haymitch, begun the process of making her a viable successful Tribute and an eventual joint Victor.

"Cinna, Cinna!" Katniss cried out in confusion." What's going on? I don't understand any of it! How are there two Peetas?, How is this one you called Peeta 2 invulnerable? What has been happening? I don't know what's real anymore.

Cinna began to answer her questions by saying, "This is going to take a lot of explaining Katniss, but I'll try. Firstly you must understand that it had always been almost impossible to get close enough to President Snow to kill him, and in any case even if we could it would have been pointless. He wasn't the only target, it was the Capitol's entire 'system' that needed to be destroyed. If we'd only killed Snow someone else from the 'political elite' or the military would have simply assumed his role, perhaps someone even worse. No, we needed a 'cause'. We needed you two in order to expose just how rotten the system was and begin to arouse the spirit of revolt and discontent, not just in the Districts but also here amongst the numerous good people in The Capitol's populous as well. To that end we needed a genuine hero and heroine from an 'underdog' district."

Cinna beamed at Katniss and Peeta and went on saying. "We couldn't have chosen a better couple, not only were you such a marvellous 'Girl on Fire' and both of you so fantastic in your interviews but also the way you conducted yourselves in the Arena was so brave and so inspiring. Spontaneous minor uprisings began to occur everywhere, even some low key rumblings of discontent were heard in The Capitol itself, spurred on by our agents here. Katniss, it was Rue's sad death, your obvious love for her and your wonderful tribute which formed a turning point. It was then that you became the Mockingjay to so many people right across Panem.

As she listened to what Cinna told her Katniss became furious, realising how much she and Peeta had been manipulated and with a thunderous expression she shouted at her stylist as she never had before, saying. "So you're telling me that I was tricked into volunteering, that Prim's selection was a set up and so was Peeta's. That our lives were put in jeopardy and our families tortured in order to spark your revolution? How should I respond to that information Cinna? With a sense of honoured gratitude? It was a vile thing to do to anybody and just as evilly manipulative as anything President Snow ever did! I trusted you Cinna, I loved you and thought you were on my side, whilst all the time you were simply using Peeta and me as pawns in your own game!"

Cinna replied in a soothing tone, trying to calm her, saying. "Katniss my dear, believe me, it was really not my choice, or at least certainly not mine alone! President Coin and District 13's Military Council were forced into acting quickly and it had to be done in the way it was, we could not use purely military means or any 'normal' assassination. Our Capitol agents were becoming alarmed that President Snow was getting more and more murderous, aggressive and paranoid, that he might unleash his nuclear weapons against District 13 in insane frustration if he couldn't gain absolute power over all Panem. The inevitable retaliation by District 13 would have destroyed everything. In any case had I not gone along with the plan I'd have been replaced at the very least, and probably executed on President Coin's orders for knowing too much!

Katniss thought for a while and then replied, more calmly. "So it was me and Peeta or possibly everyone in Panem was it then Cinna? If that's true then I suppose what you did was for the best and at least, by going into the Arena, Peeta and I stopped total destruction. I can of course see that if we hadn't done so then everyone would perhaps have been killed, our families, all our friends, everybody. Looked at that way I suppose I should forgive you, but don't expect me to trust you like I did. You'll have to work hard to earn that right again, and you might never manage it." Katniss gave him a sad smile.

Cinna returned a smile that was also tinged with sadness as he said. "Whilst you two were in the Arena we helped as much as we dared of course and our agents here in The Capitol did manage to 'tweak' the odds a little, by doing things like sending vital 'sponsorship' items to you via Haymitch and also by bringing about both of the final rule changes, to show the Gamemakers and President Snow in the worst possible light. But really your joint victory was almost entirely down to your own intelligence, skill and courage. Plus of course your love and human decency in refusing to kill each other in the end, in order to gain a tainted 'victory'. You were not in anyway our puppets in the Arena Katniss and Peeta, it was always on a knife edge whether or not you'd survive, so much was beyond our control. I nearly had a heart attack when the pair of you threatened to kill yourselves at the finish, President Coin almost wet herself too. Cinna grinned.

Katniss understood much of what she had been told and smiled at Cinna's last remark, feeling it was more like the old Cinna she thought she'd known, but still she was very confused. She asked him, "So who is the real Peeta, the one in the bed or the other one next to me here? I'm guessing it's the one lying down, but who is this one then? She indicated the 'Peeta' by her side.

"Let me answer that Cinna." 'Peeta 2' said. "Katniss", he smiled, "Please don't be afraid, but I'm not so much a who as a what. Even I don't fully know what I am. All I know is that I'm almost certainly not from your world but perhaps from a different 'parallel' one, and maybe another time as well. I somehow ended up here in the District 13 tunnels over twenty years ago and did great damage there. I was apparently some sort of berserker killing machine, virtually invulnerable to most weapons and apparently intent on slaughtering every human being I could kill. Eventually they managed to subdue me and capture me using something like a massively powerful Taser gun, the electrical current of which managed to paralyse my limbs and circuitry, allowing them to capture and examine me.

'Peeta 2' continued, saying, "Once they'd removed my two power packs, the primary and backup one I was completely inert and there was no danger of my systems re-initialising. Then they began to analyse my structure, which externally is a type of infinitely malleable metallic super-fluid, capable of assuming any external appearance. I have an armoured central core of very advanced electronics that actually allows me to operate, linked by an equally strongly armoured cable conduit to the sensor array and vocalising modules in my head. It's thought I am a prototype, as I seem to be a hybrid technology based in part on an earlier design for a fixed shape machine. Later models of 'me' would probably be completely fluid, with the circuitry on a molecular level spread throughout the structure, with multiple redundancy to compensate for any damage. It's probably just as well it wasn't one of those 'later models' that turned up in the tunnels of District 13, as it would have been invulnerable to virtually anything but cryogenic or high intensity magnetic attack. It took the scientists and technicians of District 13 well over a decade to retro engineer a suitable replacement memory module for me, as my original one had been almost completely destroyed by the high voltage electrical current used to capture me. Luckily an electronic defensive system had isolated my CPU chip and it survived, which is just as well or they'd have never managed to rebuild it, it's technology is so advanced it can't yet be replicated.

'Peeta 2' finished his explanation by saying. "The District 13 scientists could never find out much about where I'd come from or what I was. There were only a very few fragments of data still recoverable from system memory and my CPU's scrambled temporary memory cache. All I can tell you for certain is that I am something called a Terminator and I was originally designed and programmed to kill people, that was about all they could get from my chips. Where I'm originally from I can never know, nor how I came to get here. What kind of horrible world could produce something like me heaven only knows. But one thing I do know for certain and that is that President Snow would have waded through piles of corpses hundreds of feet high to be able to make an army of devices like me. Thankfully he never had the technology."

'Peeta 2' looked terribly sad and so alone Katniss thought. She didn't know how or why but she felt so sorry for the machine she now knew him to be. She gently took his hand and asked him. "So how come, if you're a machine dedicated to killing people is it possible for you to have helped us as you did? Why are you not trying to kill Cinna, Peeta and myself? Not that I'm not happy that's the case of course."

Peeta, the real Peeta from the bed replied, saying to the machine; "Let me answer that for you 'brother'. It's simple Katniss, he's been repaired, redesigned and reprogrammed. Peeta 2 is now carrying much of my personality in his electronic brain. They downloaded and copied much of what makes me 'me' into him. He has my motor skills and mannerisms, many of my memories and personality traits, possibly even some of my emotions are in that metal noggin of his as well, to all intents and purposes we're twins."

Peeta smiled and continued, "Although I jokingly call him my 'evil twin' he's not really, he's nothing like the murderous device he was originally, he's quite a nice bloke really, I like him but that's probably just narcissism on my part, but from the way you're hanging on to his paw I guess you do too." Peeta grinned at Katniss.

Katniss had begun to understand but she still had questions. Lifting up their still joined hands she asked the machine by her side, "How can you be so real, this is not plastic or metal, it is warm flesh and blood, real skin, how can that be if you are a metallic machine?"

'Peeta 2' replied, saying. "I am now a cyborg Katniss, a hybrid of electronics and mechanism covered in a layer of cloned flesh. The redesign and reconstruction of my original self could only go so far as the damage was too great. Despite a decade or so of work they could never get my shape shifting abilities working properly again, the damage restricted the functionality. I could assume the approximate size and shape of any living person, but no longer the fine detail. I could not be a convincing replica, so it was decided to use as much as possible of what I could do and make up for the deficiencies by using fairly standard muttation bio-technology for an outer 'covering'. It is thought that the earlier fixed shape models of 'me' probably were based on a similar idea and intended as an infiltration device, made to appear human to gain entrance to secure areas. For this operation I needed to assume Peeta's identity to get into 'killing range' of President Snow. That's where the Capitol's procedure of taking a blood sample for identification when children are signed in for The Reaping came in. Our District 12 agent took the original sign in sheet for Peeta, swapped it for a fake and my flesh was cloned from the blood smear for a new covering."

The cyborg went on, saying, "That's why you and the real Peeta had to go into the Hunger Games Arena and I could not be sent in with you instead Katniss. I feel bad that I couldn't have been there to protect you. I'm so sorry, believe me I wish I could have accompanied you into the Arena instead, because as you have seen I am stronger and faster than my flesh and blood 'brother' Peeta here. If substituted earlier it would have prevented his serious injury, as well as probably keeping you safer. However, sadly it takes many days to grow and attach a new flesh covering to my metallic body and even then it will only live for about two weeks at most. Even with accelerated cloning techniques there was not sufficient time to complete this copy before the Games began. To make a new external appearance for my body takes many days, it is not exactly like the process the Gamemakers used for their muttations. They always had their horrible creature already almost complete and in stasis before each Games even began, they just required small finalising 'tweaks' to make them horribly personalised in the way that they were, to resemble dead Tributes. That kind of minor cosmetic 'adjustment' can be done simply in mere hours, unlike my creation which was far more complex.

Peeta 2 finished by saying, "In any case we had no access before the games to Peeta's memories and other bio-information, since you were both taken into the custody of The Capitol as soon as you were reaped and our agent's capabilities in District 12 were very limited. I was still just a blank machine until the original Peeta was brought back to the Capitol from the Arena. Only then could a recording be made of his memories and mannerisms etc. Agents of ours on the medical staff were able to do so under the guise of treating his injuries, using a brain scanning device that had been developed for the purpose, which was based on some innovative technology and software they'd found in my camouflage and targeting modules. Then, when the copy was made, the information was uploaded into me after I was smuggled into The Capitol and thence into the hospital. We had only a few hours to cross check the 'memory implant', mainly just by the original Peeta and myself chatting to make sure I knew all the things I should know. Then the real Peeta was temporarily evacuated, leaving me behind in his place. President Snow was then informed that I was now sufficiently recovered enough to take part in a Victory Ceremony. The rest you know yourself."

"I see, thank you for making things so clear to me 'Peeta', I understand now. What's next for you? Those bullet wounds must need seeing to, even though they're no longer bleeding they have to be treated, after all you're at least partially flesh and blood. Don't they hurt?" Katniss asked.

"Not exactly Katniss." Peeta 2 replied. "I can sense them as damage but I do not feel physical pain, as such. In any case the damage is superficial and not worth repairing as I will not be needing this flesh cover again and no matter what is done it will die soon anyway. In any case I neither need, nor want to be Peeta Mellark anymore."

The real Peeta looking surprised asked, "Why's that, as far as I am concerned it's really excellent having a 'twin', I'll miss you my 'brother'. What's wrong with continuing to be another 'me', I'm sure that given time our bio technicians will be able to create a flesh covering for you that will be more durable."

"I wish it were that simple, I'm sorry but I can't stand the pain of being 'you' anymore Peeta." Peeta 2 replied to his fully flesh and blood 'twin', looking terribly sad.

But I thought you just said the bullet wounds don't hurt?" the original Peeta asked, sounding puzzled.

"They don't, that is not that pain I was talking about." Peeta 2 said, and with his voice cracking with sadness he explained, saying, "Peeta, when I was uploaded with your data I took on many of your characteristics. They were useful to me in my role as an assassin, but now my job is complete one thing in particular which was loaded into my systems is terribly painful. I cannot ignore it and as long as I am 'you' it will continue to hurt me unbearably."

Then looking longingly at Katniss the machine said; "Peeta, I share your love for this beautiful, brave young woman. I love you Katniss with all the heart I do not really posses and yet I know that you can never be mine. I would self-terminate because of the pain and grief this causes me if I could, but that is against my CPU's hard wired basic programming. Given that, then I must return to District 13. I have one final job to complete there and then I will request memory erasure and total destruction. I am too dangerous to be allowed to continue to exist here and I believe The Council will agree to my request once I explain my reasoning. If not I will have to use 'other' more 'robust' means to persuade them to destroy me, because I am too good a weapon should I fall into the wrong hands and it is best that I cease to be.

Katniss looked at the Terminator and his expression of mortal sadness broke her heart. Feeling terribly conflicted she hugged him and cried on his shoulder, saying, "Bless you 'Peeta' I understand and if you think this is for the best then neither I nor any of us must stand in your way. I see how awful your dilemma is and I see why you need to find a way to end it. But know before you leave that we are all so grateful for what you have done for us, and know also that you will be missed, dear friend."

The real Peeta then beckoned over his twin to him, sat himself up higher in his bed and hugged his strange 'brother' saying, "I'm so sorry, we never realised this would happen. I wish there were some way to help you, but perhaps as Katniss said, what you plan is for the best. But remember that you are no longer a mere soulless machine, for no machine can love. No my friend, you are a man and embody all the best parts of me. I'll miss you my 'brother'."

Cinna then asked 'Peeta 2', a question, saying, "I think I already know the answer to this, but just to be clear what is that 'final job' in District 13 you mentioned. If it's what I think it is then fear not, neither I nor any of The Council will try and stop you, not that we could. We all know she's become a dictator and is already almost as bad as Snow."

Peeta 2 smiled at the stylist and replied; "That's right Cinna, you guessed it, President Coin must die or she will become just as murderous and evil as the previous incumbent. She must be stopped now, or the whole revolution will have been in vain. I will kill her when I get back to District 13, before she can come here and crow over 'her' triumph. Hopefully then a true democracy can take root in Panem and no more atrocities like The Hunger Games will ever be allowed to happen here. I trust that you Cinna, Katniss, Peeta and all our true friends here in The Capitol and in the Districts will ensure it. Katniss, you must still be the people's Mockingjay for a little while longer my love, bring the spirit of freedom to all this country and shelter it under your 'wings'. Promise me this? Then I can cease to function happily, I'll 'die' content."

With tear filled eyes Katniss walked up to the machine, kissed him tenderly on the lips and said. "I promise, and we'll never forget you. Know you are loved. Farewell 'Peeta'."

The Terminator then left the hospital room without a backward glance on his way to board his hovercraft. Was he man or machine? Even he didn't know anymore, but at least he knew what love was.


End file.
